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USA Today
16-04-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Judas Priest former drummer Les Binks dead at 73: 'Your acclaim will live on'
Judas Priest former drummer Les Binks dead at 73: 'Your acclaim will live on' Les Binks, the drummer responsible for Judas Priest's beats in the late-'70s, has died at 73. A funeral notice for Binks lists his passing at a London hospital, with some reports adding his death occurred March 15. The band announced Binks' death in an Instagram post Tuesday, stating, 'We are deeply saddened about the passing of Les and send our love to his family, friends and fans. The acclaimed drumming he provided was first class – demonstrating his unique techniques, flair, style and precision. Thank you, Les – your acclaim will live on …' More: Clem Burke, legendary drummer for Blondie and the Ramones, dies at 70 Binks joined the British heavy metal band in 1977 after drumming with Eric Burdon and the Animals and War and made his first appearance on Judas Priest's major label debut, 'Sin After Sin,' that same year, playing on the bonus track, 'Race with the Devil.' The sticksman's resume also included stints with Deep Purple bassist Roger Glover, as well as the pop band Fancy, before his Judas Priest association. Born James Leslie Binks in Northern Ireland Aug. 8, 1951, Binks' two-year membership in the Rob Halford-fronted outfit included the band's tour supporting 'Sin After Sin,' which marked Judas Priest's first outing in America. But it was Binks' double bass drum assault that earned his acclaim in the Judas Priest canon. The 1978 albums 'Stained Class' and 'Killing Machine' (released as 'Hell Bent for Leather' in the U.S.) as well as the 1979 live album 'Unleashed in the East,' spotlighted Binks' signature speedy playing, which featured prominently on the band's first hit in the U.K., 'Take on the World.' The drum patterns from that song lived on in future generations, with both The Human League utilizing them during their 1980 tour and the indie rock band Spoon interpolating the patterns in their 2021 song, 'Wild.' Binks also co-wrote 'Beyond the Realms of Death' from the 'Stained Class' album. But two years after joining Judas Priest, Binks departed just before the tour behind 'Hell Bent for Leather.' In a 2017 interview on a fan site for Judas Priest guitarist K.K. Downing, Binks cited management refusing to pay him for contributions on 'Unleashed in the East' that 'led to my decision to leave the band. I just didn't see the point in continuing to work with a band whose manager (Mike Dolan) didn't want me to receive any payment for that live album. A completely ludicrous scenario … But that's what happens if a band allows someone like that to manage them. They lose members. So exit drummer number four.' Binks stayed active in his post-Priest years, joining British hard rock band Lionheart and the short-lived Tytan in the early '80s and since 2017 played Judas Priest songs in the band Les Binks' Priesthood. Despite a somewhat acrimonious parting with Judas Priest, Binks joined his former mates at the 2022 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony and played three songs with the band. It was the first time he shared a stage with them in 43 years.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Les Binks, Former Judas Priest Drummer, Dies at 73
Former Judas Priest drummer Les Binks, who held the spot in the metal band's lineup for a few crucial years in the late 1970s, had died at 73. The group members announced their bandmate's death on Tuesday morning (April 15), writing on Instagram, 'We are deeply saddened about the passing of Les and send our love to his family, friends and fans. The acclaimed drumming he provided was first class – demonstrating his unique techniques, flair, style and precision – Thank you Les – your acclaim will live on…..' More from Billboard Gone But Not Forgotten: Musicians We Lost in 2025 Katy Perry Posts Video of Her Blue Origin Flight Featuring Outer Space Reveal of Tour Setlist Lil Nas X Reveals Partial Paralysis of Right Side of His Face: 'I Can't Even Laugh Right' Born in Portadown, Northern Ireland, on Aug. 8, 1951, Binks (born James Leslie Binks), spent time drumming with Eric Burdon and the Animals and War, as well as the pop group Fancy before joining Judas Priest in 1977. The band formed in Birmingham, England, in 1969 and fronted by leather-loving singer Rob Halford released its debut album, Rocka Rolla, in 1974, followed by 1996's Sad Wings of Destiny. Binks made his first appearance with group in time for 1977's Sin After Sin, the band's major label debut. The sessions saw the exit of early drummer Alan Moore, who was replaced by Simon Phillips for the recording. But, with Moore unavailable to tour, Binks was tapped to hit the road with the band after bringing his signature double-bass barrage to the bonus track cover of The Gun's 'Race With the Devil.' The drummer made his biggest mark on 1978's Stained Class, where his massive, double kick drum sound and blitzkrieg style is a standout from the very first seconds of opening track 'Exciter,' one of the songs that set the stage for the speed and thrash metal of the 1980s. The album, considered by many fans to be one of the group's finest efforts, featured a rare co-songwriting credit for Binks on the ominous prog-metal shouter 'Beyond the Realms of Death.' Binks also appeared on the follow-up, 1978's Killing Machine (which was released as Hell Bent for Leather in the U.S.), the most commercially oriented collection to date from the Priest, and the LP that would also mark his swan song with the group. Anchored by meaty rock anthems such as 'Rock Forever' and the raucous 'Hell Bent For Leather,' the album set the stage for what would become the band's commercial breakthrough on 1980s British Steel, which featured the hits 'Living After Midnight' and Beavis and Butt-Head favorite 'Breaking the Law'; Binks was replaced on that album by former Trapeze drummer Dave Holland. Binks' final record with Judas Priest would be the band's 1979 Unleashed in the East live album recorded in Tokyo earlier that year, after which he split following a reported dispute with band manager Mike Dolan over compensation for the live LP. The drummer played with a series of other bands throughout the 1980s and '90s (Lionhearted, Tytan) and formed the all-star Priest cover band Les Binks' Priesthood, in 2017. In a testament to the crucial role he played in the development of Judas Priest's sound, Binks was on stage with the rest of Priest in 2022 when the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and performed as part of their three-song set in one of his final public appearances before his death. Check out their performance at the RRHOF ceremony below. Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Les Binks, Former Drummer for Judas Priest, Dead at 73
Les Binks, who spent two years drumming with Judas Priest during the late Seventies, has died. He was 73. Judas Priest confirmed Binks' death in a statement shared on Instagram. A cause was not revealed, though a funeral notice said Binks died 'peacefully at hospital in London.' More from Rolling Stone Max Romeo, Reggae Great Behind 'Chase the Devil' and 'Wet Dream,' Dead at 80 Nicky Katt, 'Dazed and Confused' and 'Boiler Room' Actor, Dead at 54 Ted Kotcheff, 'First Blood' and 'Weekend at Bernie's' Director, Dead at 94 'We are deeply saddened about the passing of Les and send our love to his family, friends, and fans,' Judas Priest wrote. 'The acclaimed drumming he provided was first class — demonstrating his unique techniques, flair, style and precision. Thank you Les — your acclaim will live on.' Though his tenure in the band was short, Binks left an indelible mark on Judas Priest. His exacting, dynamic style of play — as swift as it was pummeling — helped define the sound of Judas Priest's 1978 album Stained Class, 1979's Killing Machine (also known as Hell Bent for Leather), and their live album Unleashed in the East. When Judas Priest was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2022, Binks was on hand to accept the prize and perform with the band. Binks was born and raised in Portadown, Northern Ireland, and began drumming when he was five. After playing in various bands throughout his adolescence, he moved to London in 1972 and quickly found work as a touring and session musician. He drummed for Eric Burdon of the Animals; scored a couple of minor hits with the English pop band Fancy; and played on The Butterfly Ball and the Grasshopper's Feast, an ambitious concept album/rock opera spearheaded by Deep Purple's Roger Glover. It was through Glover — who co-produced Judas Priest's 1977 album Sin After Sin — that Binks was tipped to join the burgeoning metal greats for a world tour that same year. (Binks stepped in for Simon Phillips, who'd replaced Alan Moore during the Sin After Sin sessions.) Following the tour, Binks stuck with the band and was soon contributing to the sessions for their next album, Stained Class. He notably earned a writing credit for 'Beyond the Realms of Death,' after coming up with the track's lead guitar riff. As Binks recalled in a 2017 interview, he felt that all the songs Priest had been writing were 'up tempo,' and they 'needed to introduce some light and shade with a big rock ballad that started softly with acoustic guitar and built up to an explosive metal riff.' Following the success of Stained Class — it reached Number 27 on the U.K. album charts, and was certified Gold in the United States — Judas Priest returned to the studio for Killing Machine (which was released in the U.S. as Hell Bent for Leather). That album featured the band's most successful single to date, 'Take On the World,' a 'We Will Rock You'-inspired anthem that prominently featured Binks' drumming. 'The rhythm is just multi tracked foot stomps and hands slapped on thighs for the back beat, but it worked so brilliantly,' he said. '[ I came up with a simple rhythm part which is basically sixteenth notes on double bass drums, eighth notes on the floor toms and the snare on two and four for the first bar then two, three and four for the second bar repeated. I think we double tracked that four times so it's the equivalent of four drum kits.' Along with the two studio albums, Binks also drummed on Judas Priest's wildly successful 1979 live album Unleashed in the East, which was recorded in Tokyo in February of that year. But, according to Binks, tensions between him and Judas Priest's manager, Mike Dolan, emerged, with the drummer claiming that Dolan did not want to properly compensate him for his work on the live record. 'Contrary to what you may have read, we had no musical or personal differences at all,' Binks said of his relationship with his former bandmates. 'We shared the same musical direction and goals for the future of Judas Priest, and the reason I left was nothing to do with the band, but a lot to do with the despicable con man and rip-off merchant Mike Dolan.' After leaving Judas Priest, Binks continued to drum with a variety of bands, including Lionhearted, Tytan, and Raw Glory. In the late 2010s, he began performing classic Judas Priest songs from his era in the band live, including some shows with other former Priest members, like K.K. Downing and Tim Owens. One of Binks' last live performances was with Judas Priest at the 2022 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Best of Rolling Stone The 50 Greatest Eminem Songs All 274 of Taylor Swift's Songs, Ranked The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
